Rumor: Nintendo may launch DS successor before end of the year

The analysts are at it again, analyzing and teasing us with the possibility of something coming. This time they're teasing us with thoughts of a successor for the DS coming before the end of the year. This rumor is brought to you by Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter.

“We think that the timing of a new product introduction will depend upon the sales profile for the DS, and believe that lower than expected DS hardware sales could trigger an earlier launch for the new device,” Pachter said in an investor note.
“DS sales are solid worldwide, but are weak in Japan, leading us to expect an introduction of a new device in Japan before the end of the calendar year.”
He said that Japanese DS demand will likely continue to decline. He adds, “We think that Nintendo has a new handheld device ready for launch in [Japan] before the end of the calendar year.”

Obviously since this is just an analysts thoughts there is no solid proof that such a thing would be coming. That is besides a bit of speculation by this particular analyst, but we can still hope.